UnaBridged
by Jaksbak
Summary: A mysterious new enemy threatens SPD and always seems to be one step ahead, and the key to defeating them may be locked inside the mind of an amnesic ranger.
1. Chapter 1: Silent Noise

_**NOTE: I do not own Power Rangers or any of its characters!**_

Syd took a moment to smooth her uniform before she entered the cafeteria to join her team. She spotted them at a table off to the side of the large room.

"Well good morning sunshine," Jack teased, "Nice of you to join us." Syd rolled her eyes.

"Some of us need our beauty sleep." She replied. She chose a meager meal and sat down between Sky and Bridge.

"Looks like you might need a few more hours then." Sky smirked.

Z raised her eyebrows.

"Well Sky, you're living proof that some is better than none." Z shot back. A burst of laughter followed her comment from Bridge, Syd, and Jack.

"Hey Jack, what's on the docket for today?" Z asked after the laughter subsided.

"Response training. Cruger wants to shorten the time between an alert and the arrival," Jack shrugged, "Should be an interesting day."

"Jack," Bridge said, stuffing a piece of buttered toast into his mouth. "What if we did some sort of time hopping to get from one place to the next. I've heard rumors that SPD has been working on a prototype. I mean, not that I don't trust you or Cruger's judgement or anything. But I guess even if we did have a prototype, I don't know if we could get it working for within a single city instead of completely different times-"

"Bridge," Sky interrupted, "We should just stick to vehicles for now."

A series of beeps sounded around the table. Each ranger pulled out their morpher.

"Rangers," Cruger's voice sounded over the morphers. "Report to the Command Center immediately."

"Change of plans," Jack said, "Let's go."

The five hustled down to the Command Center where Cruger and Kat were looking over data on the central computer.

They stood in a line and saluted when Cruger looked in their direction.

"Rangers, I have a special assignment for you today, I want you to investigate a series of noise complaints in the lower city."

"Sir?" Sky said, incredulous, "Noise complaints? Really? I thought those were the job of the other teams."

Cruger stared down at Sky.

"No mission is above or below any team Cadet Tate," Cruger rumbled. "Is that clear?" Cruger asked.

Sky nodded stiffly.

"Yes sir."

Cruger turned back to the the central computer and brought up a hologram of the city.

"While no mission is below the station of a team, there is something odd about this one." Cruger tapped a button and several dozen red blips appeared on the hologram. "These are the locations of noise complaints called in the last three months." Cruger motioned for the team to join him around the hologram.

"Sir, this has to be over double the average number of noise complaints we get in a year." Sky blurted out.

Cruger nodded.

"Over triple actually," he corrected. "Anything else you notice?"

Z stepped closer to examine the dots.

"Yes, actually. Sir, aren't most of these buildings abandoned?" She asked.

This time, Kat spoke answered.

"All of them have been abandoned for at least eight months. At first, we suspected some sort of underground clubbing, but everytime our operatives arrived on scene, there was no sign of life anywhere. There weren't even any clubbers running away."

"What about other ways out of the building? Tunnels maybe?" Syd asked.

"We looked into that." Cruger answered. "But we had to rule it out as only about half are connected to old tunnels. Besides, everytime the operatives get to the scene, the area they search looks like it hasn't been touched in months."

"What about someone using these calls as cover ups for other crimes?" Jack asked.

"That's possible," Cruger admitted, "but we haven't found any pattern in crimes that correlate to the calls. However, these calls always come in batches of three. Every night there is a call, two more are called in within minutes."

"Do you have anything on the phone calls themselves?" Bridge piped up. "Like maybe they were hijacked to look like prank calls, but they weren't, and in actuality, they were prank calls that were disguised as not prank calls disguised as prank calls."

Kat shook her head in confusion at the tumble of words that fell out of Bridge's mouth.

"Er- we've tried to track the phone calls. The caller usually doesn't stay on the line long enough for a full trace. The one we did trace was a pay phone here." Kat entered a coordinate and a blue blip appeared in the inner city. "By the time we got there, they were long gone."

"What about the callers themselves?" Jack asked.

"We record the calls." Cruger brought up a series of audio files that all began playing at once. "But the exact wording and voice change. So far, no voice has called twice."

The room fell into silence.

"So what's changed?" Z asked. "You wouldn't have brought us in if something weren't different."

Cruger acknowledged Z's question with a nod.

"There was a rally and protest in the City Center and a riot broke out. The other teams have already been dispatched to help control the crowd and prevent damage to life or property." He said. "So that leaves you to be on alert in case there are calls tonight which is highly likely according to our prediction algorithms."

The team nodded among themselves.

"What do you want us to do in the meantime Commander?" Jack asked.

Cruger looked over the rangers.

"I want you to look over this case from top to bottom and be ready. Other than that, all we can do is wait." An SPD messenger scurried into the room and whispered something in the commander's ear. Cruger thanked her and turned to the team. "For right now, the Dision Chamber needs my attention, but I'll be back to check on your progress later today." With that, Cruger swiftly exited the room and left the rangers with Kat.

Without hesitation, they set straight to work. They checked all noise complaints dating back six months to see if there were any related calls that were not yet on their radar. They double checked any security cameras in the area. They listened to the calls again and again.

Several hours passed before Cruger reappeared for a progress report.

"It's slow going Commander, and it doesn't seem like we're getting anywhere." Jack reported.

Cruger opened his mouth to reply, but stopped when the Commander Center's communication phone rang.

Kat answered and spun around to face Cruger.

"Sir, we have a noise complaint. Wait...scratch that, two." She said.

"Where?" Cruger pointed to the hologram.

Still on the phone, Kat quickly input the new coordinates which glowed green and appeared in abandoned buildings on the outskirts of the city.

The room held its breath as they waited to see if a third noise complaint would come through.

Kat nodded as a voice came over the phone.

"Yes. Yes thank you." She hung up and input another coordinate. "That's three Commander."

Cruger grunted.

"Time to suit up Rangers, and be careful out there."

The five nodded.

Soon, they were morphed and out in the city.

"Syd and Z, take the first location. I'll take the second. Sky and Bridge, take the third." Jack spoke into their comms as the lights of the city flew past them on the road."

Z and Syd broke off from the others first and Jack a little while later. Bridge and Sky zoomed through the streets toward an old office building.

The decrepit structure loomed over the two when it came within sight. They parked their motorcycles and held their blasters at the ready.

"Jack, we've reached the location." Sky whispered into the still of the night.

"Copy, approach with caution," came the reply.

"Jack, we're here too," Syd's said.

"Alright, again, extreme caution people. We don't what know what, if anything, we're dealing with." Jack warned.

Sky and Bridge nodded to each other and entered the four-story building. Sky motioned for Bridge to ascend the stairs to the upper floors while Sky cleared the lower floors.

The rotting floorboards creaked under Sky's feet and a layer of dust and grime covered every surface. Sky moved room by room, keeping his breath steady and his heart rate even.

The further into the building Sky moved, the more aware he was of the quiet that blanketed the premises. Sky didn't see a single mouse or a nesting bird and the silence made him stand on edge. The wind whistled eerily through the broken windows and the moonlight cast long shadows into the recesses of the rooms. Rustling fabric swished softly and was the only movement other than Sky in the empty building.

The last room of the bottom floor was a smaller room and as Sky moved through it, he saw a flash out of the corner of his eye. Sky spun to face the movement and flinched as he saw his own reflection in a cracked mirror.

Sky chided himself for flinching, then carefully retraced his steps to the last set of stairs he saw.

"Bridge," he whispered, "I've cleared the first floor and am heading up to the second. What's your status?"

Sky waited for a reply from Bridge, but none came.

Sky crept through the second floor, taking care to avoid the more treacherous looking floorboards.

"Bridge?" Sky tried again. "Bridge, I need you to respond. I just reached the second floor. What is your status?"

Again, no response.

"Bridge, buddy, come on. Where are you?"

Nothing.

"Bridge, if you are in trouble, remember our safe word." Sky's panic began to rise. Sky quickened his steps, no longer caring about the creaks and pops that emanated from his stride.

Sky switched channels.

"Jack? Something's wrong. I can't get ahold of Bridge." He struggled to remain level headed. Jack responded promptly.

"Wait, you mean he isn't with you?"

Sky scowled.

"If he was with me, I wouldn't need to worry about getting ahold of him would I?" He growled.

There was silence on the other end.

"Ok." Jack said finally. "Syd and Z are on their way to you, I'll try to get there as fast as I can, but I'm the furthest away. See if you can get through to Kat and the Commander."

Sky switched channels again.

"Commander? Kat? Are you there?" Sky sped up again, clearing rooms hurriedly.

"Yes Sky, we're here." Kat responded. "But be aware that we'll need to get Bridge back here soon, his morpher seems to be glitching. I can't get a trace on his signal."

Sky's blood ran cold.

"What did you say Kat?"

"I said that Bridge's morpher is dark. I'll need to make some repairs when he gets back," she repeated.

"Kat, Bridge isn't with me and he isn't responding to me over communications." Sky was practically running through the building now and he raced up the stairs. He flew through the third floor, calling out for Bridge.

"Sky, calm down, it's probably just a glitch." Kat tried to console him.

Sky spotted a clear set of footprints in the dust that led to the fourth floor. Sky followed them closely, careful not to destroy them with his own feet. Sky sprinted to the top floor and burst out into the first room. Sky stopped short when he saw something shooting off weak sparks on the floor. There, in the middle of the room, was Bridge's completely destroyed morpher.

"Oh Delta. Kat, I found his morpher, it's been destroyed." Sky breathed into his comms.

"What! Where's Bridge?" Kat asked, frantic.

Sky saw a trail in the dust that looked as if something heavy had been dragged through it.

"He- he's gone…"

_**Author's Note: Heyo everyone! Thanks for so much for reading my latest story! Just trying to gauge the interest for this story. Please let me know what you guys think of it in the comments below! P.S. Idea credit for this story goes to wrestlechick93. Thanks for the idea! I'm excited to make it come to life!**_


	2. Chapter 2: Lost and Found

Lights flashed against the rotting building. Sky sat on the back of an ambulance outside the office building with a shock blanket wrapped around him and a medic checking him over.

Sky couldn't believe that Bridge was missing. He didn't want to. Jack had to practically drag him out of the building so the forensics team could analyze the scene.

Kat and Cruger had pulled as many people off of the riots as they could manage to seal off the area and the place swarmed with SPD and reporters.

Sky had already given his account of what had happened three times and he didn't know if he could recount it again without losing control of his emotions.

It was his fault and he knew it. He was the one who decided to split off to clear the floors separately. His best friend was missing and he was to blame. Sky stared unseeingly at the ground and he was vaguely aware of someone else sitting down next to him.

"We'll find him Sky." Syd said, "All of SPD is looking for him, and we won't rest until we do." She placed her hand on his back comfortingly. "We'll find him."

If Sky heard her, he gave no indication of it. He continued to stare into space, oblivious to his surroundings.

Kat approached cautiously.

"Sky, we should get you back." She urged.

Sky snapped his head up.

"No," he barked. "I want to… I need to stay here with the investigation."

Kat nodded sympathetically.

"I know you want to remain here, but you need sleep so you can help with the investigation tomorrow." Kat sat on the other side of Sky. "We will have operatives working around the clock to find him, but right now you need to take care of you."

Sky didn't want to leave, but he could already see the sun coming up over the city. He nodded begrudgingly and let Kat help him to a waiting car. Jack, Syd, and Z climbed in after him.

The four maintained a tense silence. Operatives awaited them at the base and helped them each to their rooms.

Sky entered the room he shared with Bridge. The silence was deafening and Sky was too wired to attempt sleep. He hoped a quick shower would calm him. The warm water relaxed his muscles, but did little to quell the storm within him.

Sky sat on his bed and stared across the room at the empty bed opposite him where Bridge's form should have been. Sky replayed the night over and over in his mind, trying to see if he had missed something...anything that might lead them to Bridge, but he couldn't remember any signs of what had transpired above him.

Sky didn't know how much time had passed, but eventually his eyelids grew heavy. He rested his head, just for a moment, and drifted off.

Sky's dreams were tormented by a pale face and Bridge's voice calling for help.

Sky didn't get any sleep that night, or the next night, or any night. His days were consumed by sympathetic looks and condolences and promises of finding Bridge. Every day, Sky, Jack, Syd, and Z scoured all records they had collected, all recordings they had, and would even patrol the city for signs of Bridge. As the bags under their eyes grew bigger, their hope grew smaller.

The days wore on and the search became more desperate. Protocols would only allow so much time to be dedicated to a missing operative before the department had to re-allocate its resources back to protecting the city.

Sky felt himself watching the clock more and more, anxiety gnawing at him as he looked over the call records for the twelfth time.

He barely reacted when a hand tapped him on the shoulder.

"Hey buddy." Jack muttered.

Sky merely glanced back.

"Sky, I know this has been tough for you, but I need you to know that the protocol only allows for a certain amount of time-" Jack began, but Sky whirled on him.

"I know what the protocol says!" He screamed, his shoulders slumped. "I know what it says. I know that we only have a few more hours before the case is handed to a different department entirely. But-" he swallowed hard, "I don't know that I can give this up. He hasn't been gone that long Jack." Sky's eyes pleaded with Jack. "We can't declare him MIA. After he is, the search tapers off. It gets sent to another department not within SPD. I can't let them take this case."

Jack nodded his understanding.

"I know how you feel, Sky. Bridge is my friend too, but Sky… the trail's gone cold. We aren't any closer to finding him and the city is getting no safer for us sitting here on a case we aren't trained to solve."

Sky's eyes burned.

"Jack, you don't understand. Stop pretending you do." Sky pushed Jack away from him. "Here, when an operative is declared MIA, it's essentially declaring them dead. No one really looks for them, they are awarded honors that are reserved for those who have died, and the department recognizes that the close friends and family are in mourning."

It took all of Sky's training for him to hold back his tears.

"You just don't understand. I'm not giving up on him."

Jack shook his head.

"You know that isn't going to fly with Cruger. He won't let you keep investigating this- it isn't your specialty, and yes I do understand." Jack's voice softened. He too was trying to stay strong. He hated giving up on finding Bridge. He felt that as the red ranger, he had failed. But Jack also knew that the rest of the city still deserved to be protected.

"No you don't!" Sky screamed, his guilt finally boiling over. "It's my fault that Bridge is missing! We were a team and I told him to go upstairs! It's my fault! We shouldn't have split up! I was right below him, how did I not hear anything? How did I not see anything? How did I not…how did I..." Sky had to fight to compose himself.

Jack could feel his own guilt bubbling up.

"You think you're the only one who feels guilty? You think you're the only one that's allowed to be upset?" Jack clenched his fists. "Sky, I'm the red ranger. I made the call on what teams to split and where they all went. If I had gone there myself, it would be me instead of him. If I had decided to not split up at all, we wouldn't be here." Jack took a step forward. "But that's the job, Sky. We make tough calls and decisions all day. There was no indication of any hostile forces in the area, so I made a call and it was the wrong one. Now, I have to live with that every day. I have to live with the fact that my order got one of my friends kill-" Jack stopped mid-word and corrected himself, "Now I have to live with the fact that my order caused him to go missing in the line of duty."

Jack held Sky's gaze.

"We have to keep moving forward for Bridge. If he were here, he'd tell us to worry about the city, and then probably buttered toast." Jack's joke had little joy to it, but it still withdrew a small smile from Sky.

Sky checked the clock.

"Three hours and counting," he muttered.

Sky looked to the screens monitoring the city.

"Jack, I want to go look for him, one last time before we hand off the case. I still have three hours left. You never know right?" Sky started toward the door. "I know what you're saying is true, Jack, but I am going to look just once more."

Jack jerked his head toward the garage in approval.

"I know you think you need this. I know I can't stop you. Go."

Sky grunted his thanks and was soon flying through the city on his motorcycle. He glanced from side-to-side, looking but not really searching. Sky sped through block after block of the city.

Sky's thoughts were clouded with guilt and desperation and anger. He could barely see straight.

Sky pulled off to the side and took off his helmet to clear his head. When he took in his surroundings, he realized he was on the opposite side of the city from where Bridge was abducted. He cursed under his breath and prepared himself to begin his aimless search again.

The sound of breaking glass echoed from several blocks down and screams and shouts followed.

Sky rammed his helmet back on and peeled out toward the commotion. He called in the disturbance just before he arrived.

A large crowd was gathered around an alleyway that was piled high with trash bags and garbage.

Sky began to push his way through the assembled onlookers.

"SPD! Back up, back up! Let me through, SPD move out of the way!" He finally managed to wiggle his way to the front and held up his hands to push the crowds back.

"He fell from up there!" One of the people pointed to a fourth-story window.

Sky followed the hand to the window and nodded. He pushed the throngs of people back a few feet and then turned to the object of interest.

A filthy body clad in rags laid face down in the dump and Sky had to force himself to get closer to what appeared to be a homeless man.

It took everything Sky had to reach out and felt for a pulse and he was rewarded with a weak sign of life.

"He's alive," Sky turned on his radio. "Command Center this SPD Squad B Operative 2, Sky Tate. We have an unconscious man on the corner of Jay and Firtinal, send an ambulance and an investigative team."

Sky gripped the man by the shoulders and carefully turned him over so he could breath. Sky gasped and jerked away.

"...roger Tate. Do you need back up?"

Sky shook his head in disbelief.

"Yes, and get the commander on the comms now," he breathed.

The radio crackled in again.

"What's happening Tate?"

Sky reached out to touch the man's shoulder again.

"The victim...it's….it's Bridge."


	3. Chapter 3: Something Old, Something New

Sky didn't dare move Bridge again for fear of hurting him more. All he could do was try to control the crowd and any potential witnesses. He wanted to run straight to the room the witness earlier had pointed out, but he couldn't leave Bridge.

"Did anyone see what happened?" Sky asked. No one stepped forward. "I'll repeat myself, did anyone witness this man fall?" Nothing.

A rustle in the trash behind him turned Sky's attention back to Bridge.

"Bridge? Buddy?" Sky knelt down next to him.

Bridge lifted his head.

"Where...where...am...I?" He croaked out.

"Shh, don't talk. Save your strength, we'll get you some help." Sky cooed.

Bridge's eyes seemed to focus on Sky.

"What's...happening...who...are you?" He asked.

Sky's throat tightened and his heart dropped. He could hear the distant sirens getting closer and closer.

The ambulance stopped on the street and the EMTs made their way through the crowd. They pried Sky away and set to work, one asking Sky questions.

"What happened?"

"A witness said he fell out of that window."

"Any medical conditions?"

"He has a genetic modification that allows him to see auras if his gloves… oh Delta…" Sky realized that Bridge's hands were bare. "He-he needs gloves or he will be mentally overwhelmed. He has to wear his glove!"

The EMT nodded.

"Do you have them with you?"

Sky shook his head.

"I don't know where they are, but he has spare gloves at SPD headquarters."

"SPD headquarters?" The EMT questioned. "He's one of yours?"

Sky nodded faintly.

"Alright, if he needs these gloves then we'll need them. Does he have any other medical conditions?"

"No."

"Allergies?"

"No."

"Any previous hospitalizations?"

"Once."

"For what?"

"Got into a bad fight with a suspect."

"Is he on any medications?"

"Not that I know of."

The EMT thanked Sky and turned his attention to his colleagues who were already wheeling Bridge to the ambulance.

Sky's team arrived just as the ambulance lit up their lights and pulled out into the growing night.

Cruger and Kat arrived just behind them with the investigation squad close on their heels.

Sky felt like he was walking through both a dream and a nightmare all at once.

Syd reached him first.

"Sky, what happened?" She gripped his shoulders and forced him to look down at her.

Syd's panic was evident, but so was the spark of relief in her eyes.

Sky shook his head.

"I don't know. I just heard a crash and then a crowd was gathered around him."

Sky watched as the investigation squad questioned the witness from earlier.

Kat and Cruger spoke in lowered voices. Kat nodded to Cruger and hopped in an SPD vehicle and drove off.

Cruger approached the group.

"Kat is going to the hospital to be with Bridge. Sky, what happened?" Cruger asked.

"I'm afraid I don't really know, sir." Sky sat down heavily on a crate. "I was driving around the city and stopped for a moment. I heard a crash and then a crowd was gathered over here."

Cruger nodded.

"And? Did he say anything?"

Sky's shoulders visibly slumped.

"He woke up briefly and…" Sky swallowed hard, "Commander he...he didn't recognize me."

The five fell silent.

"Are you saying Cadet Carson has amnesia?" Cruger asked.

Sky shrugged.

"I'm not a doctor, sir, I'm just telling you what I saw. Bridge looked at me as if he had never seen me before in his life."

"Alright, we'll look into this. Anything else?"

Sky started to shake his head but then remembered Bridge's gloves.

"Sir, Bridge didn't have his gloves when I found him, the EMT asked if they could somehow get them."

Cruger dipped his head.

"I'll get someone to bring his back up pair."

Cruger gestured for a detective on the investigation squad to Sky to let him give his account of what happened. Cruger pulled the other rangers away to give some form of privacy. Cruger told the rangers they could join Kat at the hospital after the investigation squad was completely finished with Sky.

The others nodded and waited impatiently for Sky to finish. By their count, Sky had to retell the story at least three times to different investigators.

It was late into the night when Sky was finally released. Without a word, they hopped on their vehicles and drove directly to the hospital.

Kat sat in the waiting room, eyelids heavy. She stood up when the other rangers trudged into the pristine hospital. Sky opened his mouth to ask where Bridge was, was Kat spoke first.

"Bridge is in the ICU, unconscious. He isn't allowed to have visitors yet. Before you ask, the answer is no- the doctors haven't told me anymore."

Sky napped his mouth shut, looking very dissatisfied.

Kat sat back down in her chair and the others settled in around her, ready for a long night.

They took shifts of sleeping and keeping vigil, and woke each other up when a doctor entered the room. They stood as a unit.

"Family and friends of Bridge Carson?" He asked, they nodded. "It's been a long night for Bridge. He has a fractured left ulna, fractures on both his left tibia and fibula and a full break of his left collarbone, three badly bruised ribs and a major concussion. He is still unconscious, but we are hopeful that he will wake up soon. I can allow you to see him in pairs."

Sky and Syd followed the doctor to where Bridge laid with a bandage around his head and almost his entire left side. His right side was covered in scratches and bruises.

Sky let Syd stood on either side of the bed and couldn't keep even a slight smile from their faces. Bridge was back, even if he was in bad shape. The beeping of the machines was unsettling and reassuring at the same time.

All too soon, it was time for them to leave so Z and Jack could see him.

When Kat finally came back from her visit, it was light outside.

"You'll have to take shifts watching him." Kat told them. "We have to go back to headquarters, but one of you can stay here until the next person relieves them."

"I'll stay," Sky volunteered. Jack shook his head.

"You've already been up for well over 24 hours, you need to sleep. I'll take first watch. Syd can come after me, then Z, then Sky. I'll call you guys if there's any change."

Sky looked like he wanted to argue, but a yawn interrupted him and, as much as it annoyed him to admit it, Jack had a point. Instead of arguing, Sky stumbled out the door.

Jack's point was further proven by the fact that Sky barely made it back to SPD and into his room before he fell asleep in his bed.

* * *

Syd was still rubbing the sleep from her eyes as she drug her feet through the doors of Bridge's hospital room. Syd had to gently wake up a snoring Jack. Jack startled awake.

"Go get some real sleep, Jack," she told him.

Jack nodded and plodded out, leaving Syd with Bridge.

Syd sat in the chair next to his bed and looked at his unconscious face.

"Hey Bridge. You gave us all a real scare there for a bit." There was no response. "We all almost gave up hope, but I guess by now we should know better than to underestimate you," she smiled. "When you're ready to wake up, we'll be here. We'll help you face whatever is coming in the form of recovery. We've got your back." Syd sat back in the chair and prepared for a long shift.

She could feel herself dozing off...again… when she heard a rustle in the sheets. Syd looked up to see Bridge blinking awake.

"Bridge!" Syd's shout caused Bridge to flinch. "Sorry, sorry! I'm just happy to see you awake." Syd ran pressed the button to page the nurse. "How are you feeling?"

Bridge was busy gazing around the room. A nurse walked up behind Syd when Bridge's eyes settled on her.

"I'm sorry, but, uh...where am I? And who are you?" Bridge asked.

Syd's stomach dropped. Sky had been right, Bridge didn't remember them.

The nurse pushed Syd back and out of the room, paging the doctor.

The white coated fellow appeared down the hall and hurried to Bridge's room, Syd saw his name tag read 'Dr. Banet.'

He closed the door behind him and left Syd to watch as they talked to Bridge and checked his breathing.

The fifteen minutes seemed like an eternity to Syd, but the doctor finally reappeared.

"What was your name and your relation to Bridge again?" The doctor asked.

"I'm Syd, and he's one of my best friends." Syd choked on the last word, tears in her eyes. The doctor nodded.

"I'm afraid that Bridge has developed a severe case of amnesia," he worded carefully.

Syd closed her eyes and took a deep breath before replying.

"Is it from the concussion?"

Dr. Banet shook his head.

"No, it wasn't. I hate to say it, but we aren't exactly sure what caused this. The most likely answer is that his brain tried to block out a traumatic experience and went a little too far. It seems like he remembers who he is and where he came from, he just doesn't seem to remember anything or anyone else."

Syd bit her lip.

"What's the best course of action?"

Dr. Banet took a moment to respond.

"I don't want to overload him with stimuli right now due to his concussion, however, it might do him well to see one or two good friends."

Syd thanked the doctor and pulled out her morpher and called for Sky.

"When your friend arrives," Dr. Banet continued, "Please wait for myself or a nurse to escort you in. As I said before, we do not want to over stimulate him."

Syd understood and called Jack and Z to update them on the situation.

Syd was still on the phone with Z when Sky came sprinting down the hallway with a nurse trailing after him, trying to get him to stop. Syd finished her conversation with Z and checked her watch, knowing that Sky broke more than a few traffic laws in his rush here.

Syd explained the situation to Sky who looked more dejected the more Syd told him, but it wasn't long before he was shifting from one foot to another in his anxiousness to see Bridge.

Sky was placated when a nurse joined the two and allowed them to enter the small hospital room.

Bridge looked at them as they entered.

"Oh hey, it's you!" Bridge said to Sky. Sky's heart soared and his hope was rekindled. "You're the guy from the alley!" And all at once, Sky's flame was extinguished.

The nurse turned to whisper to them.

"Just talk to him, introduce yourselves. Sometimes the smallest thing can jolt the memory."

Syd couldn't gather the strength to speak, so Sky stepped up to Bridge.

"Hey buddy, it's me Sky. That's Syd. We're your friends."

Sky received a blank stare from Bridge.

"We grew up together at SPD, you, Syd, and I. Can you remember anything?" Sky looked for any hint the Bridge remembered.

"I'm sorry, I don't remember. If I did I would tell you, but if I didn't, which I don't, then I guess I couldn't tell that I remembered, which is true because I don't remember." Bridge even seemed to confuse himself with that last sentence.

Bridge narrowed his eyes at them and then seemed to get an idea. Very carefully, he managed to remove the glove from his right hand. As soon as it came off, Bridge let out an ear splitting scream and started writhing on the bed. Bridge swung his arm around and clutched Sky's arm in a vice-grip that Sky couldn't shake.

The nurse pushed Syd out the door and ran to Sky, trying to pry Bridge's hand off his arm. Two more nurses rushed in, followed by the doctor.

"What happened?" Banet shouted.

"I don't know!" The nurse shouted back, "He took off his glove and then this started!"

Bridge's screams echoed down the hallways of the hospital. Together, the nurses and the doctor managed to pry off Bridge's hand and shove his glove back on. It seemed like a switch was flipped and Bridge stopped moving and laid clutching his head. The attendants moved to usher Sky out of the room.

"Wait!" Bridge said through gritted teeth. He seemed to be relaxing and calming down by the second. "Wait, I remember!" Bridge looked at Sky with relief in his eyes and smiled. "I remember!" The doctor still moved to push Sky out of the room, but Bridge stopped him again.

"Sky Tate! We've been friends since always and you can produce a shield from the accident that altered our genes! You thought your dad died on the job, but then you found him again, but it was too late to save him. You cried in the room that night when you thought I was asleep, though you would never tell anyone. I remember it all!"

Syd's face appeared at the door.

"Syd!" Bridge exclaimed! "I remember you too! I remember Jack and Z, Cruger and Kat, Boomer, all of them! I remember-" Bridge stopped short. "Wait, I remember the call, we went to the building. I went upstairs and then… I...ehrm...I can't remember anything after that." Bridge looked to Sky for answers.

"Sky, what happened? Did we catch them? I'm assuming it's a them as I fell out of a window last night after we entered the building."

Sky was still processing everything Bridge was telling him.

"Um, no, we didn't." He stated plainly.

"Well then why are you still here! They're probably still out in the city! Why are you standing there staring at me?" Bridge's eyes were bright and it seemed he had no idea how much time had passed.

"Um, Bridge, buddy." The staff let Sky approach Bridge again. "They're long gone."

Bridge shook his head.

"What do you mean? There's no way, they couldn't have gotten that far."

Sky was struggling to find the words to break it to Bridge.

"Buddy, you've...been gone for a while."

Confusion mixed with disbelief bloomed on Bridge's face.

"You went missing that night. I finished clearing the lower levels and tried to get in contact with you, but you weren't answering I went upstairs and you…" Sky swallowed. "Bridge, you've been missing for a month."

_**Author's Note: Thanks for reading! Feel free to leave a comment below! I'll try to post a chapter weekly from here on out!**_


	4. Chapter 4: Bugging Feeling

Bridge couldn't speak, couldn't think.

"I've...what?" He finally managed.

Sky took a seat in the chair next to Bridge, the doctors and nurses hovering close by.

"That night, after we split off and I couldn't get a hold of you, I ran upstairs to find you. When I got to the fourth floor, your destroyed morpher was laying on the ground, and you were nowhere to be seen. We searched for you for weeks. Today was the last day this- I mean, your case was in our jurisdiction. Tomorrow it would've been off to cold case." Sky could see the pain evident on Bridge's face as he struggled to come to terms with it.

"I, uhm, so...where...where have I been? Who took me?" He asked.

Sky shrugged.

"We don't know. We were hoping you could tell us." Sky looked at Bridge hopefully, but one look and Sky knew that Bridge was in no condition to even attempt to remember anything else.

After a time spent in silence, Dr. Banet cleared his throat.

"Bridge, I have a few questions I need to ask you if you're feeling up for it." He asked.

Bridge nodded, suddenly appearing extremely weary.

The doctor moved to his other side.

"How are you feeling. Dizzy? Nauseous? Any pain?"

Bridge shook his head slowly.

Banet nodded and pressed on.

"What happened when you took off your glove? If you can tell us, we might gain a better understanding of how to help you."

Bridge shook his head to clear it and looked up at Banet.

"I somehow remembered my powers and, at first, thought Sky was lying. I took off my gloves to see if he was and then…" Bridge put his head in his hands, "There were so many emotions, a lot more than I'm used to. They all came at me at once. I couldn't control them. But, I did see Sky's aura, and that's what made me remember."

Banet listened and dipped his head thoughtfully.

"We'll need to keep a close eye on you then. For now, no more reading auras or taking off your gloves at all. We need to get you healthy again before we can figure out how to help with that."

Footsteps pounded down the hallway followed by labored breathing, and Jack and Z stopped short outside of Bridge's room. Banet gestured for the other nurses and doctors to give some privacy and allow the others into the room.

A smile spread across their faces when they saw Bridge awake and alert.

The team gathered around Bridge's bed.

"How do you feel?" Z asked tentatively.

Bridge smiled weakly.

"Better than I did a few minutes ago. You guys missed all the fun."

Jack looked quizzically at Sky who quickly filled him in.

Jack and Z's eyes widened the longer Sky talked.

"So," Jack said when Sky finished, "You didn't remember anything, but now you do?" Jack asked.

Bridge half-heartedly shrugged.

"I remember people and events for the most part. I haven't really had time to discover what I do and don't remember. But before you ask, no I don't remember being attacked or anything while I was gone."

Syd laid a hand on Bridge's uninjured arm.

"We aren't asking you to remember anything else right now. For now, we're just glad that you're OK."

A knock on the door drew the attention of the room to Cruger and Kat who stood stiffly at the door with another person in a lab coat directly behind them.

"Rangers." Cruger greeted them shortly. "Might we have a word with Cadet Carson. Alone."

Begrudgingly, the other rangers saluted and quietly exited, leaving Kat to close the door behind them.

Cruger closed the blinds over the window into the room and effectively shut the rangers out of their meeting with Bridge.

The four resigned to the chairs in the waiting room, lounging about until they could see Bridge again.

The clock ticked away the hours tirelessly as they waited and waited and waited.

"What do you think they've been talking about?" Syd asked.

"His ordeal." Jack piped up. "They're probably asking a lot of questions on where he was and what happened."

"But he can't remember anything right now," Sky leaned his head back against the wall, "which will only make them ask more questions to try to figure out how to jog his memory."

"Poor Bridge," Syd whispered, "he's already exhausted from whatever happened earlier and now more probing questions that he can't answer."

Jack shrugged.

"He'll be fine. Cruger knows what he's doing. He won't push Bridge too far."

But even Jack's confident demeanor had a tinge of doubt and worry as he glanced at the clock to see how long they had been alone with Bridge.

The shadows were beginning to grow long when Cruger, Kat, and the gentleman emerged from the back hallway.

The rangers snapped to attention and relaxed at Cruger's command.

"Rangers, I know you want to see Bridge again today," he began, and the rangers muttered in agreement, "however, he needs to rest right now so he can get back on his feet as quickly as possible." Cruger could plainly see the disappointment on their faces. "As of right now, Bridge is slated to remain in the hospital for at least two more weeks. After that, about three more in a wheelchair and then possible two more months on crutches. He has a long recovery ahead of him."

Sky looked ready to argue with Cruger, but Cruger held up a hand to silence him.

"Bridge needs time to heal and recover and it is our responsibility to help him, whatever form that takes." Cruger directed his order at Sky.

Sky clenched his jaw and almost had to physically restrain himself from uttering a scathing response.

Cruger motioned them to follow him out the front doors of the hospital.

"We all have work to do. I expect to see you all in the Command Center within five minutes of me." Cruger grunted to them as he slid into an SPD cruiser.

The cruiser pulled away from the curb and the rangers looked at each other.

"Anyone else got a weird feeling about this whole thing?" Z asked. They uneasily looked amongst each other.

Thoughts raced through Syd's head, and she couldn't shake the feeling that the reasoning behind Bridge being kidnapped wasn't random, but she couldn't imagine why specifically him. As far as they knew, Bridge could really only read auras. It was true that he saw the future once, but that was one time. He could sort of read thoughts, but she couldn't imagine he would let someone else use his power for themselves. But, what if…?

No, Syd couldn't think like that. She wouldn't allow herself to even consider the possibility.

Cruger was ready and waiting for the rangers when they arrived. They were barely in the door before he started talking.

"Rangers, we have a problem," he grunted. "One of our undercover operatives was ambushed today during an operation. He is in critical condition."

The confusion in the room was evident as the team failed to see how this pertained to them specifically and what Cruger wanted them to do about it.

"The operation and two years of undercover work are now up in smoke."

Jack stepped forward.

"Do you need us to find the people who did it? Or arrest them?" Jack asked. Cruger shook his head.

"The men responsible are already in our custody. This ambush occurred three weeks after one of our new satellite facilities for the mental training of recruits was fired upon and firebombed, resulting in the death of three."

Sky stood up next to Jack.

"As terrible as those two events were, what do they have to do with us, sir?"

Cruger stared hard at the team.

"Both the operation and the facility had one operative in common that worked on the projects. Bridge Carson."

Syd stiffened. The kidnappers hadn't wanted Bridge for his skills. They wanted Bridge for the knowledge he had. Bridge consulted on more projects now than any of the others. What other projects were now compromised? Syd tuned back in to listen to Cruger.

"-pulled all nonessential operations and put the essential ones on high alert. We have no idea have many are compromised. This is why we need Bridge to remember what happened as soon as possible, and I need your help with that."

Cruger turned to Sky and Syd.

"You were there today when he remembered his past today. I know it has something to do with his gloves, but that it also causes him extreme pain. We need you all to come up with a plan to try to jog Bridge's memory, fast, with as little discomfort to him as possible."

Cruger swept his gaze over them.

"Bridge knows many secrets, and lots of lives are depending on you to help him remember so we can stop whoever this is before they can take more SPD lives. Go. SPD is counting on you."

The team saluted.

Jack lead them out of the room, issuing the orders for their game plan.

"Sky, go tell Bridge what Cruger is planning. I don't care what Cruger says, we need him to know. We are going to need Bridge's help with this. The rest of us will start on that idea of Cruger's. Let's go team. Not a moment to waste."

* * *

His fingers flew across the keyboard and the screen hummed to life showing the inside of a hospital room.

"Boss, bug is in place and video is up." He shouted to the other room.

The boss the picture of his wife and daughter back down on their memorial and strutted to the man.

"Excellent. Audio?"

The man nodded.

"Coming in right… now."

The audio recorded nothing but the sounds of a busy hallway.

"Good." The boss smiled wickedly.

"There was no sign that anyone saw or suspected a bug. We had to turn it off for the scans, but we should be fully up and running again."

The smiled widened.

"Even better."

On screen, a man in a blue uniform with the SPD crest entered the room. A man they knew to be named 'Sky.'

"Hey, Bridge," he greeted, "got a minute?"

The boss let out a haughty laugh.

"It's perfect! Now, let's see what SPD is up to."

_**Author's note: Heyo! Sorry, sorry, sorry, I know it's been more than a week, but I hope this chapter makes it worth the wait! As always, thanks for reading and please share any comments, questions or concerns down below!**_


	5. Chapter 5: Remember When

Sky wheeled Bridge out into the fresh air of the hospital's courtyard. This small respite came as a much needed change from his stuffy room. Bridge took in the outside world for the first time in several days. No one had come to see him, save for the commander, since Sky filled Bridge in on their plan to help him remember. Sky felt immensely guilty that he hadn't found any time to spend with Bridge and hoped to try to make up for it by talking him on a stroll around the courtyard.

"It feels good outside. No chill in the air." Bridge commented.

Sky shrugged.

"It has been a month. Winter is finally on its way out." He said.

"Wait, what?" Bridge swiveled in his seat with much effort. "A month? Really?"

Sky's stomach dropped and he nodded, narrowing his eyes. "Yes, don't you remember?"

Bridge laughed nervously.

"Of course I remember, I was uh, just kidding…" Bridge's voice held no hint of humor.

Sky pulled Bridge up next to a bench and sat down beside him.

The two sat in silence for several minutes. Sky was trying to figure out how to ask about the missing month of Bridge's memory.

"Before you ask, no, I don't remember anything." Bridge spoke.

Sky looked at him in surprise.

"I didn't ask."

Bridge shook his head, looking more defeated than Sky had ever seen him.

"You didn't have to. That's all anyone has been asking me about. I feel like it's all anyone ever asks about." Bridge slumped forward, head in his good hand. "I've tried to remember, trust me I have. I keep trying and trying but I always come up with a blank. I mean, I'm missing an entire month of memories!" He sighed. "I'm trying."

Sky put a hand on his shoulder. "I know you are buddy. It's only been a few days. Maybe we just need to give it time.

"Yeah? How much time?" Bridge took a deep breath. "I feel like every second I don't remember is another second everyone else is in danger. I feel like the information in my head means...something. I just don't know what!" Bridge checked the clock on the wall.

Sky thought about the operations and projects that were now in jeopardy and the urgency in Cruger's voice when he commanded them to find a way to help Bridge remember.

As much as Sky did in fact want to give Bridge time to remember, time was something they didn't have.

"How is the… the… the thing… um…" Bridge made a box gesture with his hands. "That thing you're building for my powers? The something chamber?"

"The containment chamber?" Sky suggested.

"Right, that. How's that coming?" Bridge asked in a quiet voice, almost like he was talking to himself.

"We're trying, but there's no kind of precedent for this kind of thing. We're not even sure how to begin. We've never had to try to contain our powers because-" Sky stopped short.

"-because I'm the only one who can't seem to control it."

Sky shook his head.

"I didn't say that."

Bridge looked up to meet his eyes.

"But you were thinking it."

Sky met Bridge's eyes. Behind the tired irises, there was something else, a sort of burden that Sky had never seen in him before.

Bridge lifted his hands.

"I'm starting to find that these uh...these...um..." Bridge gestured to his gloves.

"Your gloves?" Sky finished.

Bridge nodded.

"Yeah. I'm finding out that they aren't working as well as they used to, and my powers are stronger than ever after that month."

Sky sat back, concern evident on his face.

"So, you can read minds now," is all he said.

"No. I told you guys once before that it's more like an energy that I can pick up on, but it's a lot more powerful than it used to be."

The silence overtook the two again.

Sky was starting to worry. Bridge was never the best at controlling his abilities, but then again, his were also the most unpredictable. Now, his abilities had grown exponentially when they still didn't fully understand his original abilities. Something in that month changed him and they needed to figure it out before Bridge or anyone else got hurt. On top of that, it seemed like Bridge was having some trouble with his memory.

Bridge looked at his hands.

"Hey Sky."

Sky looked at him, no semblance of the concern and confusion left in Bridge's voice.

"Why do I wear these gloves all the time?"

Sky's concern for his friend abruptly changed to alarm.

"Bridge, are you feeling alright?"

Bridge shrugged.

"I think so? Why?"

Sky quickly took hold of Bridge's wheelchair and wheeled him back inside and to his room.

"You've been wearing gloves since you were a kid because of your powers."

Realization dawned in Bridge's eyes.

"Uh, right."

Sky helped Bridge back into his bed and hurriedly bid him goodbye before venturing out into the hall.

Sky recognized Bridge's doctor by the nurses station and stepped up to confront him.

"Doc, do you have a minute?"

Banet smiled at Sky.

"Sure, sure. What can I do for you?"

Sky lowered his voice to a whisper.

"It's about Bridge Carson."

Banet smiled again and gestured to a more secluded section of the room.

"What about him?" The calm demeanor remaining on the doctor's face.

Sky took a breath.

"I was with him today and he seemed like he was having a hard time recalling certain words and he forgot a few events such as his disappearance and wearing gloves his whole life. Should we be concerned?"

Banet followed along and smiled reassuringly.

"First thing to note is that Bridge had a traumatic experience and our brains will sometimes dezl with that trauma by blocking it out of our ability to readily recall it. This missing time may or may not return, but only time will tell. Second, we did find a small anomaly in Bridge's brain in his temporal lobe which is the primary lobe for memory, here." Banet pointed to a spot on the back of his own head to show the temporal lobe. "We are having a radiologist take a look at it, but we don't think it is cancerous. We honestly don't really know what it is. It could that Bridge had a small bleed in his brain and this is the remnants of that. It could also be a benign tumor. At this point in time, there is no reason to raise the alarm just yet, but we are keeping an eye on it."

Sky's gaze averted to the ground.

"All that stuff Bridge said about remembering everything? That's not true?"

Banet wiggled his hand in a 'so-so' motion.

"Bridge remembers most everything, but his memory is partially impaired by the mass in his temporal lobe. He will most likely forgot things more easily and words may be harder for him to recall." Banet clapped Sky on the back. "Things will get better, though. Bridge should be released in a few days after we are sure the worst is over and his concussion is healed. He'll have his sling and casts on for a few months and then, physically, he'll be as good as new."

"Physically?" Sky repeated, "Doc, what about mentally?"

Banet shook his head.

"We don't know. But, I'm afraid that he may never be the same person again." Banet gave one last smile before leaving Sky alone in the hallway, his best friend on his mind.

_**Author's Note: Yikes! It's been too long! I 100% forgot to figure exams into my timeline! Here is the next chapter and in an effort to not break another promise, all I will tell you is that I will get it uploaded as soon as possible! Thank you all for your patience and your support!**_


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